Sajjan Jindal promoted JSW Group has firmed up plans to establish a captive port in Odisha. Tehe site identified for the project is Jatadhari Muhan, near the Paradip port- the same location where POSCO had intended to build its captive port.
Officials privy to the development say the investment on the project is pegged at INR 2000 crore. It may go up further as the company plans to ramp up capacity. Initially, the port capacity is envisaged at 10 MnT pa and in due course of time, it could be expanded to 20 MnTpa.
The port project would be implemented by Group company JSW Infrastructure. The captive port is strategically planned to cater to the requirement of JSW Steel’s 10 MnT steel plant proposed near Paradip and a pellet plant of 32 MnT pa capacity to come up somewhere near Joda. The captive port is expected to give JSW Steel an edge especially in exports. Apart from being the largest steel maker in the domestic market, the company is also counted as one of the leading exporters from the country, especially of coated steel products.
The company feels the chosen port site of Jatadhari mouth should not be a hurdle as it is outside of the port limits of the Paradip major port and 32 km from another port project site- Astarnaga in Puri district.
JSW Steel has committed an investment of INR 50,000 crore on the Odisha steel plant and associated facilities. The company has asked for 4500 acres of land for the integrated steel project to be set up close to Paradip.
Though the state government officially maintains that the site for JSW’s steel project is not zeroed in, the company has clearly asked for the land where Posco project was supposed to come up. JSW Steel has asked for 2700 acres of land that has already been acquired for the Posco project. The company desires that this patch of land should be transferred by the state government after constructing the boundary wall. Aside from the steel plant, the company has asked for around 150 acres of land for township and 90 acres for rehabilitation & resettlement (R&R) colony. The steel company has urged the state government to transfer all the land parcels at the rate of Rs four lakh per acre.
The Odisha government, meanwhile, is appraising the land requirement of JSW Steel. It is engaging central government agency Mecon to do the due diligence on land.
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